Final Reflection on EDUC 6711

After rereading my personal theory of learning that I developed during Week 1, I don’t believe that I would make any modifications to my philosophies. I still strongly believe that students have a need to be entertained and learn better from instructors whom they respect and trust. Also, I still agree with my ideas about the powerful impacts of environmental factors, psychological factors, and personal filters. Furthermore, I still believe that Howard Gardner’s theory of Multiple Intelligences in addition to learning styles play a large role in the way students learn. However, while my theory of learning remains the same, it doesn’t mean that I didn’t learn anything from this class. As I mention in my Week 1 assignment, I did not have great knowledge of the existing learning theories. Now that I have studied multiple learning theories, such as constructivism, behaviorism, cognitive learning theories, and social learning theories, I have a much better understanding of the various ways students gain and retain information. If anything, my personal theory of learning has been augmented to include more possibilities for the way students learn. Moreover, my own knowledge of educational technologies has grown because I now have more technology tools to add to my repertoire. Happily, these technology tools were easy to learn about, and I am excited to begin using them in my own classroom when I return to school next year.

Reflecting on my instructional practices regarding the usage of technology, I now realize that I definitely have the opportunity to incorporate more technology into my lessons. While I am often concerned about not having enough time, I see now that many technology tools are easy to use and could really enhance our reading of the texts found in the curriculum. For example, I would like to begin using more webquests and virtual field trips because I think it is important for students to discover information on their own, rather than through a lecture or other teacher-centered lesson. Also, I am very interested in the addition of virtual field trips because they give students the chance to “witness” history and explore places that they would not actually be able to visit. Secondly, I really enjoyed learning about VoiceThreads because they are very relevant to a language arts class, and I can think of many ways that I can use VoiceThreads in my curriculum. The NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards mandate that language arts students gain speaking and listening skills. Therefore, creating and participating in VoiceThreads fulfills important criteria. Integrating more education technology such as the examples discussed above will have a significant and positive impact on my teaching abilities.

Two long-term goals that I now have regarding my instructional practices and the use of technology are described below:

1.) First, I would like to incorporate the use of weekly blogs as a different type of forum for student participation. While I have used blogs in the past, it was only an occasional occurrence, and I did not take full advantage of the benefits offered by student blogs. I would like my students to utilize their blogs more often to respond to prompts that I give them, interact with each other and offer their classmates feedback and constructive criticism, and share their work with a wider audience. Next year, I will have my students create their blogs during the first week of school so that we can begin using them right away. I believe that the blogs will give a voice to those students who are reluctant to participate in a classroom setting, and it is always my goal to encourage plenty of participation from my students. 

2.) Second, I would like my students to experience having “keypals,” or students from another school with whom they would interact through emails or other technology. While this may seem like a simple goal, my idea is somewhat intricate. I would like to collaborate with a teacher in a distant location to design a unit based on the reading of the same text and frequent communication between our students based on their reactions to the text. For example, our students can ask each other questions about the book through their emails and work together on an Internet project that they could build through the use of blogs, wikis, and other online settings.
While orchestrating this type of task would certainly take much time and effort on my part, I believe that the effects on my students’ learning would be tremendous and unforgettable.

Overall, I am quite pleased with the knowledge I have gained in this course. The learning theories, instructional strategies, and educational technologies I have encountered will absolutely make me a more effective teacher in the future.

Social Learning Theories and an Analysis of Instructional Strategies in the Language Arts Classroom

According to social learning theory, people construct meaning primarily through their interactions with others and with the environment. In reference to education, Dr. Orey adds that students are actively engaged in constructing artifacts and conversing with others (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011). Therefore, a significant aspect of social learning theory is cooperative learning. In cooperative learning, students work together to "attain group goals that cannot be obtained by working alone or competitively" (as cited in Palmer, Peters, & Streetman, 2003). There is no doubt that incorporating plenty of cooperative learning in the classroom is a valuable practice. Through this instructional strategy, students are given the opportunity to practice and develop essential 21st-century skills that will benefit them in the workplace one day. When given the chance to collaborate, students can improve skills such as “leadership, decision-making, trust building, communication and conflict-management” (Palmer, et al., 2003). In order to take advantage of the benefits offered by cooperative learning, teachers must create meaningful, challenging activities that require students to collaborate positively and share their strengths in their attainment of a common goal.

One cooperative learning activity that places responsibility for learning on the shoulders of students involves the students becoming teachers of each other. Dr. Orey discusses this possibility when he states that teaching others helps the learner gain a deeper understanding of the content (Laureate Education, Inc., 2011). In a previous discussion, I described a project I assigned my students that required them to work in groups in order to teach a world myth to the rest of the class. I found that my students became experts in their own myths; researching their stories and developing a lesson plan for their teaching period truly did help them to gain excellent understandings of the myths. Dr. Orey also suggests using a Jigsaw strategy. Another activity that I often use is a Socratic Seminar. In this type of class discussion, the teacher does not participate at all. Students are responsible for generating the text-related topics for discussion and must maintain a balanced, respectful conversation for the duration of the class period. When utilized correctly, I find that Socratic Seminars can really augment student comprehension of the novels we study together.

Furthermore, there are numerous technology tools that support social learning theory and cooperative learning strategies. In Chapter 7 of Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works, the authors explore a few different options for cooperative learning techniques, including student-created multimedia; web resources, such as “Keypals,” WebQuests, web site creation, collaborative organizing, and web-enabled multiplayer simulation games; and communication software. One particular possibility, giving students the opportunity to become keypals with students from distant locations, is an interesting idea that could result in memorable learning experiences. According to the authors, “Communication with students in other cities, states, and countries broadens the perspective of students and challenges them to learn about other cultures, languages, and issues throughout the world” (Pitler, Hubbell, Kuhn, & Maleoski, 2007, p. 145). I could definitely imagine using this idea in my language arts classroom. For example, while learning about the consequences of drunk driving and the effects of alternative and creative sentencing as opposed to traditional jail sentencing during our reading of Whirligig by Paul Fleischman, students could email their keypals in other states or countries to inquire about their government’s laws concerning this topic. Another activity, web site creation, “can be a very enriching collaborative experience for students” (Pitler et al., 2007, p. 147). Building a web site not only promotes teamwork, but it enables students to share their work with the outside world because the web site can be accessible to the public. This is very similar to the use of blogs, such as through Blogger or Edublogs. While I have used blogs for the purpose of peer to peer commentary, I have yet to use them in a way that would allow students to connect with a broader audience.

In addition, other examples of social learning-based technology include social networking sites, such as Facebook or MySpace; Second Life, a multi-user virtual environment, and Google Docs, an online collaboration tool. I would use a site such as Facebook in my curriculum because I could assign students a project that involves creating a fake profile for a character from a book we are reading. I would also use Google Docs for many different reasons. One idea that comes to mind is a proofreading activity that would allow students to proofread each other’s work and make suggestions for revision.

In conclusion, I believe that social learning theory plays a pivotal role in education today because students can learn an abundance of information from each other and from their environments. Teachers can enhance cooperative learning opportunities by incorporating technology-based activities and projects that demonstrate 21st-century skills.

References

Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer). (2011). Program eight: Social learning theories [Video webcast]. Bridging learning theory, instruction and technology. Retrieved from http://laureate.ecollege.com/ec/crs/default.learn?CourseID=5700267&CPURL=laureate.ecollege.com&Survey=1&47=2594577&ClientNodeID=984650&coursenav=0&bhcp=1

Palmer, G., Peters, R., & Streetman, R. (2003). Cooperative learning. In M. Orey (Ed.), Emerging perspectives on learning, teaching, and technology. Retrieved  2/5/13, from http://projects.coe.uga.edu/epltt/

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E. R., Kuhn, M., & Maleoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom

instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum

Development.



*CHECK OUT MY VOICETHREAD HERE:  http://voicethread.com/share/4097800/